1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical axis adjusting mechanism for X-ray lens for adjusting an optical axis of an X-ray lens implemented in an X-ray analytical instrument, an X-ray analytical instrument, and a method of adjusting an optical axis of an X-ray lens.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, an X-ray analytical instrument for detecting an X-ray emitted from a sample in response to electron beam irradiation on the sample has been known to the public. A superconducting X-ray detector is preferably used as the X-ray analytical instrument of this kind because it dramatically enhances the energy resolution from the conventional level.
Incidentally, since the traveling directions of the emitted X-rays are individually different, it is desirable to enlarge the area of a receiver section of the detector in order for enhancing the receiving efficiency of the detector.
However, in order for enhancing the energy resolution of the detector, the X-ray detector, in particular the superconducting X-ray detector has no other choice than reducing the area of the receiver section. As a result, the detection efficiency of the X-rays emitted from the sample decreases. To cope with the above, the use of an X-ray lens is thought to be effective for enhancing the detection efficiency, and a method of applying a multispindle goniometer to optical axis adjustment is reported (See Giorgio Cappuccio et. al., “Capillary optics as an X-ray condensing lens: An alignment procedure” Kumakhov optics and application: selected research papers on Kumakhov optics and application 1998-2000 Edited by Muradin A. Kumakhov. Bellingham, Wash., USA: SPIE, c2000).
In the method of adjusting the optical axis while mounting the X-ray lens on the multispindle goniometer, however, it is difficult to dispose a sample, a sample stage, an excitation source such as an electron gun or an X-ray source, a superconducting X-ray detector, and other analytical detectors in a limited space, and accordingly, the detectors need to be set apart from the sample, thus problematically degrading the device performance.